Chapter Summaries

Shinnō released a wormlike creature from Yuliu, while Anlus carried out his family’s long-kept mission on a mountaintop. Anlus cut his wrist and began invoking a forgotten god, hoping to welcome its return.

• Something emerged from Yuliu’s body and took the form of a segmented, wormlike creature, delighting Shinnō.
• Anlus walked through the silent night toward a mountaintop to fulfill his family’s mission.
• Anlus reached the cliff beneath the full moon and cut his wrist.
• Anlus let his blood fall over the cliff and began chanting to summon the forgotten god.

Anlus and Jack Kadar’s blood-soaked prayer sent a mysterious arrow into an unknown land, where an unseen being awakened. Tang Woods then came to in a ransacked home, injured and confused about his surroundings.

• Anlus recited a prayer with Jack Kadar’s name, spent his remaining strength, and died after watching a three-colored arrow shoot into the sky.
• The arrow reached an unknown land, where a mysterious existence opened its eyes.
• A smiling young man wrote “Begin” in a yellowed notebook.
• Tang Woods awoke in a bloodied recliner inside his wrecked home and struggled to his feet.
• Tang Woods inspected his reflection in a shattered mirror and saw his pale, injured appearance.

Tang Woods recovered his identity as Yachidavir, a fragment of a god’s soul, and began investigating how to free his true body from its seal. He found that Yaltos City was cut off from knowledge of the wider world, then heard hurried footsteps approaching his home.

• Tang Woods regained his composure and remembered that the original Tang Woods had been killed the previous night.
• Yachidavir recalled that he had been a god called the Lord of the Future before an unknown power invaded and the gods began the Abyssal Era.
• Yachidavir realized he might have been sealed and had sent fragments of his soul into the bodies of eight recently deceased people, including Tang Woods.
• Yachidavir searched Tang Woods’s memories and found no information about gods or their followers in Yaltos City.
• Yachidavir concluded that ordinary people in Yaltos City could not access the truth held by those in power, then heard hurried footsteps in the corridor.

Shinnō revealed the Zero-Tails, a monster created by the Sky Ninja Village, and entered its body to become its Jinchuriki. The Zero-Tails attacked Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke, who began fighting back.

• Shinnō introduced the monster before Naruto and Sakura as the Zero-Tails, a creation of the Sky Ninja Village.
• Shinnō announced that he was about to become the Zero-Tails' Jinchuriki.
• Sasuke arrived as Shinnō entered the monster's body.
• The Zero-Tails awakened and lashed out at Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke with its tentacles.
• Naruto and Sakura dodged the tentacles while Sasuke cut them apart before they could hit him.

Hinata joined Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke as they fought Zero-Tails, explaining that she had followed strange statues and cave entrances into the area. She revealed that the entire area had risen into the sky, leaving the group unable to rely on help from Konoha.

• Zero-Tails's severed tentacles regenerated while the group struggled to get inside its body.
• Hinata arrived and asked Sakura and Naruto why they were there, while Sasuke continued fighting without drawing attention to himself.
• Naruto paused in surprise at Hinata's arrival and nearly got hit by a tentacle, but Hinata warned him in time to dodge.
• Hinata explained that she had investigated strange statues and cave entrances after noticing them with her Byakugan, then came toward the disturbance.
• Hinata said she had sent a distress call and left a Shadow Clone outside, but the area had risen into the sky, so Konoha would not be able to find them.

Hinata joined Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke in fighting Zero-Tails, giving them an opening to attack Shinnō's monster. Hinata disabled several tentacles and sent a powerful blue lion toward Zero-Tails as Naruto and Sakura reached close range.

• Hinata entered the battle and used her Byakugan to evade Shinnō's attacks.
• Sasuke activated his Sharingan, spotted an opening, and charged Zero-Tails, drawing many tentacles toward him.
• Naruto and Sakura seized the opening and rushed toward Zero-Tails.
• Hinata used Gentle Step Twin Lion Fists to disable several tentacles.
• Hinata launched a mighty blue lion at Zero-Tails as Naruto and Sakura reached close range.

Naruto and Sasuke attacked Zero-Tails, while Sakura's team sent a distress signal that prompted Jiraiya to go to their aid. The chapter ended with Jiraiya leaving Konoha as the courtyard remained quiet.

• Naruto created countless Shadow Clones, some defending against Zero-Tails' tentacles while the others formed Rasengan.
• Sasuke used Chidori Stream to burn through the tentacles and charged toward Zero-Tails.
• A ninja reported to Tsunade that Sakura's team of Konoha chunin had sent a distress signal.
• Tsunade ordered Shizune to notify the Anbu Third Squad, but Jiraiya offered to handle the mission instead.
• Tsunade agreed that the distress signal meant the situation was serious, and Jiraiya set off.

Ranmaru reflected on the care he received from Aunt Yamada and grieved for Uncle Yamada. Meanwhile, the Night Crow Squad captain tried to dissuade Hanamazi and Wu Liao from interfering, but Wu Liao called to a woman hiding in a tree.

• Aunt Yamada called Ranmaru to eat, and he appreciated her concern and the companionship he had found in her home.
• Ranmaru remembered chatting and playing shogi with Uncle Yamada and felt sad that he had died.
• The Night Crow Squad captain recognized Hanamazi and offered him and Wu Liao rewards if they helped the squad, indirectly threatening them to stay out of the way.
• The middle-aged man in the plaid shirt refused to get involved, while Wu Liao stayed silent.
• Wu Liao called down to a beautiful woman hiding in a tree, saying the gathering must be more lively than waiting alone.

Wu Liao claimed he had come to the frozen lake only to find his cat, Yumi, and the cat emerged from beneath the ice. As Wu Liao prepared to leave with Yumi, the cat tugged at his pant leg, leaving him to hear what it wanted.

• A cloaked woman leaped from a tree and confronted Wu Liao after he called her auntie, while Dragonfly knocked Black Bear into the snow for his remarks about women.
• Wu Liao told the gathered groups he had come to retrieve his cat and called for Yumi, but received no answer at first.
• Yumi cried out, cracked the lake ice, and walked out of the water without a drop on its fur.
• Black Bear accepted that Wu Liao had been telling the truth, while Dragonfly and Hanamazi noted that Yumi was no ordinary cat.
• Wu Liao said he would leave with Yumi, but Yumi tugged his pant leg, and he crouched to hear what it wanted.

Wu Liao tried to retrieve the Gate Demon Codex despite the danger, but a Night Crow Squad member attacked him with fire. As the blaze faded, the attacker’s laughter stopped and terror filled his eyes, leaving Wu Liao’s fate unclear.

• Yumi told Wu Liao that the Gate Demon Codex was nearby but trapped, and Wu Liao decided he could not leave without it.
• Wu Liao told the others he still needed to retrieve something, provoking hostility from the Night Crow Squad.
• A black-clad Night Crow Squad member attacked Wu Liao with a wave of flames while Hanamazi watched and Bai Mu prepared to intervene.
• The woman in the white cloak charged toward the Night Crow Squad as the light around Wu Liao faded and the attacker froze in terror.

Wu Liao survived the flames by forming an ice defense and revealed a power that shocked Dragonfly and the others. As he prepared to act, Ranmaru was caught in a net and stared toward an apparently empty place.

• Wu Liao emerged unharmed inside an ice sculpture after his defensive ice withstood the flames.
• Wu Liao realized how powerful he had become and erupted with a terrifying chill that startled everyone present.
• Wu Liao summoned a deck of playing cards and tossed them into the air as they circled like butterflies.
• A huge net descended over Ranmaru and everything within three meters, while four black figures surrounded it.
• Ranmaru stayed calm as the net tightened and fixed his gaze on an empty place in the distance.

A group of shadows abducted Ranmaru and killed Aunt Yamada while staging the courtyard to look as if the Sky Ninja had attacked it. Their meticulous cover-up left one household mysteriously missing amid the chaos.

• Four shadows subdued Ranmaru with a net and an anesthetic.
• A higher-ranking ninja ordered the group to clean up and make the courtyard look as though the Sky Ninja had attacked it.
• After Aunt Yamada called for Ranmaru, the leader ordered one shadow to take care of her, and the shadow returned alone.
• Three shadows staged the false scene, using the nearby Sky Ninja attack and the unsettled district to hide the household's disappearance.

Akane Higurashi returned home after the Sky Ninja attack and witnessed Ranmaru being taken away by intruders. She understood his warning to stay hidden and chose not to expose herself, leaving her family’s fate uncertain.

• After the Sky Ninja attack, Akane Higurashi was released from the Ninja Academy’s protection and hurried home.
• Akane saw black-clad figures enter her family’s courtyard and secretly watched from outside the gate.
• Akane watched the intruders take Ranmaru away, and he silently warned her not to move or make a sound.
• Akane stayed hidden, realizing that intervening would only put another life in danger.

After finding the aftermath of an attack and realizing Grandma Yamada was in grave danger, Akane Higurashi decided not to report it to Naruto or her teacher. She went to the Hyuga Clan seeking Hinata and, finding her away on a mission, agreed to speak with the Clan Head instead.

• Akane Higurashi understood that the scene before her meant things were grim and resolved to remember what happened and wait for revenge.
• Akane Higurashi decided not to tell Naruto or her teacher, then calmly retreated after the three black figures left.
• Akane Higurashi crossed the ruins and reached the Hyuga Clan's territory, where patrolling ninjas stopped her.
• Akane Higurashi told the Hyuga ninjas she was Grandma Yamada's granddaughter and urgently needed to see Hinata.
• A Hyuga ninja told Akane Higurashi that Hinata had left Konoha on a mission, but the Clan Head could hear her out, and Akane eagerly agreed.

A Konoha Anbu discovered that a staged scene at Aunt Yamada's house concealed something suspicious and headed to the Hokage Building. On Sky City, Naruto and The Four Rookies defeated Zero-Tails, leaving Shinnō's withered body behind.

• A Konoha Anbu investigated the courtyard above Aunt Yamada's house, spotted flaws in the fabricated scene, and suspected an old adversary's involvement.
• The Konoha Anbu abandoned his minor mission and went to the Hokage Building to report the discovery.
• The Four Rookies overwhelmed Zero-Tails, whose intelligence had been dulled by its transformation.
• Naruto destroyed Zero-Tails with a Great Ball Rasengan, and Hinata gave up on collecting it after seeing its green liquid.
• Shinnō emerged from the blast in a withered form, and his perfected body was gone.

Hinata and the others escaped Sky City after its power source failed, while Sasuke left with a book taken from Shinnō. The group drifted down in small boats as Sky City crashed to the ground.

• Sasuke took a book from Shinnō and left after giving Hinata a pointed look.
• Hinata warned Naruto and the others that Sky City would fall without energy, and they hurried to escape.
• Hinata led the group to the entrance rooftop, where they found two small boats and boarded them.
• The group cut the boats loose, and their wind sails slowed their descent.
• Sky City lost its support and crashed to the ground shortly after they escaped.

After Sky City crashed into the forested hills, Naruto and his companions assessed the wreckage and decided to take Yuliu back to Konoha. Sakura found that Yuliu was physically unharmed but in a temporary shock-induced coma, leaving her recovery to be addressed after they returned.

• Sky City struck the ground, causing a vast area to cave in and tremors to spread nearby.
• Hinata, Sakura, Naruto, and Yuliu reached the ground and surveyed the devastation.
• Naruto asked Sakura to examine Yuliu before they headed back to Konoha.
• Sakura found that Yuliu had no serious injuries but had fallen into a shock-induced coma, and advised against waking her.
• Naruto agreed to take Yuliu back to Konoha.

Sakura, Hinata, and Naruto set out, but Hinata sensed that something bad was coming and grew dispirited. In Konoha, Akane Higurashi told Hyuga Hiashi what she had witnessed, and he comforted her while deciding that the matter needed investigation.

• Sakura, Hinata, and Naruto set out, and Naruto briefly studied the ruins of Sky City before leaving.
• Hinata sensed that something important and possibly harmful was about to happen, but she did not explain her unease to Sakura.
• Akane Higurashi went to Hyuga Hiashi's study and broke down in tears as she told him what she had seen.
• Hyuga Hiashi listened, comforted Akane Higurashi, and determined that someone needed to investigate before he judged the matter.

Hyuga Hiashi sheltered Akane Higurashi while suspecting Danzo had orchestrated the incident. Tsunade also identified Root as a likely culprit but hesitated to act, fearing a confrontation that could destroy either Root or the Hyuga Clan.

• Hyuga Hiashi placed Akane Higurashi under the Hyuga Clan’s protection while they investigated what had happened.
• Hyuga Hiashi suspected Danzo was behind the incident but concluded the Hyuga Clan could not make a major move without evidence.
• Hyuga Hiashi decided to leave the matter to Hinata because she had brought Ranmaru back and he wanted to understand his daughter better.
• An Anbu reported new information to Tsunade, who ordered an investigation into the family’s background.
• Tsunade’s report pointed toward Root, but she judged that supporting the Hyuga Clan could provoke a destructive conflict.

Tsunade concealed the suspected Root incident as collateral damage from the Sky Ninja attack while ordering a separate investigation. Danzo learned that both Konoha and the Hyuga Clan had noticed something, but expected them to avoid major action.

• Tsunade ordered the incident filed as collateral damage from the Sky Ninja attack and requested a new case file and reinvestigation.
• Shizune told Tsunade that the cover-up seemed inappropriate, but kept her unease to herself.
• A Root member reported to Danzo that the Hokage and Hyuga Clan had noticed signs of Root's involvement.
• Danzo concluded that neither Konoha nor the Hyuga Clan would make a major move and told Root to focus on its own affairs.